Keeper
by donutgirl
Summary: The lives of four Generals are forever changed when the power of love and hate collide. LT, GN, OC centric. full summary inside
1. KEY

CHAPTER ONE; KEY

**Hi :D This is my first dynasty warriors fanfiction that centralizes around Ling Tong (x3), Gan Ning (my 3****rd**** fave) and my original character, Ling Yun, A.K.A Ling Tong's twin sister. It's basically just human drama and all. Het relationships and Yaoi between the two male stars too. I hope you enjoy this one. Please R/R. It will be greatly appreciated. The first chapter is a little boring, but believe me, it will get more exciting…and dramatic.**

FULL SUMMARY:  
Keeper focuses on the lives of four young, capable and different generals serving under Wu during the Han Dynasty; each trying to figure out who they really are and what their destinies are: the charming Ling Tong who is trying to balance between his duties and his feelings; the quiet and soulful Min Xing Yi, whose shattered past she cannot remember; Ling Tong's alluring twin sister, Ling Yun Wen, trying to realize what her main motive for life is while bearing a grudge against the extreme Gan Ning, whom in turn, is trying to figure out who his feelings truly lie with.

**x3 **

**CHAPTER ONE; ****KEY**

The sun was already setting into the crimson red sky by the time the young Wu general, Ling Tong, arrived. He got off his horse, patting it gently and walked to his destination. Spring always had its special effect of putting a smile on people's faces whenever they saw its beautiful work; an array of beautiful flowers that grew perfectly on the soil, and even when it rained, the aftermath made it look even better when you looked up close to see raindrops on the petals. As he walked by the trail, his eyes were fixed on the sunset ahead of him. He remembered when he was younger; he asked his father how far away they were from the sun whenever it set into the sea on the sand. His father would laugh at his son's naivety and said: "That's _very_ far, my boy."

The young officer smiled at his distant thought and kneeled in front of the thick piece of stone in front of him. Engraved in strong red letters, painted his father's name in the middle of the stone, big and clear. His smile turned to a slight frown as his fingers traced around the engraved words of his father's name. He touched the borders of the stone with his hands and rested his forehead on the top of the stone for a minute. Pulling himself back, he lit the candle that lay on the metal plate, then, after praying for another minute, stood up and closed his eyes, ignoring the smell of smoke filling the air.

**&**

"_Father!" _

_Ling Cao turned around to see his son and his men run towards him. He sighed tiredly and signaled to his boat to wait. _

"_What are you doing, son?" He asked strictly. _

"_I could ask you the same thing, father." Ling Tong replied. _

_Ling Cao sighed again and ran a hand down his face. "I'm going to do what I was told to do. And so should you. There could be enemies you have not defeated. Now please, go." He didn't want his son to worry about him; he could lose concentration on the battle field and get killed. That was the last thing he wanted to happen to his son. _

"_But father, those are pirates you're talking about. They will kill you!" Ling Tong already sounded desperate and determined to make another situation. His father shook his head and put a hand on his right shoulder. _

"_On this battlefield, you and I are not father and son. We are generals under Wu. We are comrades. Every general has his own mission to do. You of all people should know that, right?" Ling Cao said sternly. _

_Ling Tong stood speechless as his father gave him a light pat on his arm, a smile, and walked into his boat, proceeding to his mission. _

_Moments passed, sounds of metal clashing against metal arose in the air. Ling Tong could only look at his father and a few men attack the pirates on their ship. He blinked as one of his men shook him. "Sir, shouldn't we get back to our mission?" Ling Tong barely nodded. "Sir." _

_Ling Tong snapped back to reality, gripping his nunchaku hard; his brown eyes filled with strength and determination. He turned around to face his men, raising his nunchaku in the air. "Let's do our mission and show them what Wu is made of!" He shouted inspiringly. His men cheered and made way for him so the young officer could lead them into enemy troops charging towards them. _

_And to him, leaving his father to do the mission was his biggest mistake._

"_Father!" He screamed, running to his father's body when it had been claimed. He fell to his knees when he saw those familiar eyes looking at nowhere but death. Those eyes that he inherited, those eyes which wrote a thousand words. Those eyes which were dead. _

"_Father…" Tears sprang in his eyes and he hugged his father close to him, not wanting to let go, not intending to let go. He placed his fingers over his father's eyes and closed them. "Father…" He kept repeating. _

_His face was hot with anger and sadness. Hot tears poured out of his eyes as he knew his father was not coming back. He then glared into the open space, slowly releasing his father. He grabbed his nunchaku and stood up. "Curse you Gan Ning…" He said with gritted teeth. With one last glance at the man who raised him, Ling Tong's eyes now spelled revenge and vengeance. _

**&**

Gan Ning was the object of hate of the Ling family. The aunts and uncles, the cousins, all hated him and wished he was dead. The only family member who had forgiven him and even more, swore an oath of friendship, was Ling Tong. Nobody else would forgive him. Nobody else could lay hands on him anyway, as they were inexperienced. The only danger he would face was from Ling Tong's twin sister, Ling Yun, a classic beauty with a deadly attitude towards those she hated.

For him, saying she was beautiful sounded a little wrong, since she was his sworn brother's _twin. _However, nobody could deny the fact that the two twins were a pair of good looking ones.

"Sunshine isn't in the palace premises is she?" Gan Ning asked as he defended a blow from his sparring partner, Lu Meng, also known as 'Old man'. He would earn a smack at the back of his head from him whenever he mentioned his nickname.

"Who is 'Sunshine'?" Lu Meng asked.

"The female Ling," Gan Ning replied, raising his eyebrows.

"She _is _in the palace. You know, doing what she always does, looking at the horizon, waiting for time to fly as she waits for another mission." Lu Meng said. Then he kept quiet when the ex-pirate nodded. "Why Sunshine?"

"What do you think? Whenever I mention her name I always see a death behind it. Sunshine sounds better and makes me see 'I live' behind her name. It's a 'my mind' thing." Gan Ning explained.

"She is really just like Tong, isn't she?" Lu Meng noted.

Gan Ning nodded, "More than you can imagine. Competitive, sharp tongued, quick witted, strong. Maybe if I save her from the battlefield too she would forgive me. She might even swear an oath too," He said.

"Don't test your luck, Ning. She would rip you to shreds on the battlefield. The girl's quick. And besides, after she kills you, she'd just say she couldn't save you from being stabbed by an enemy soldier. Why do you think Lu Xun and Zhou Yu never put you two on the same area but far away from each other?" Lu Meng said.

The ex pirate raised an eyebrow at the older man and lowered his weapons. "You guys confuse the heck outta me sometimes. You made me and Sunshine's brother work together on the same battlefield when he was seeking vengeance against me. And he's a guy. She's a girl. She's not as tough as he is!" He protested.

"Oh, think again, smart guy. True, she's not as tough as Tong is. BUT, she's smarter. And she hates you more than Tong did. You're a valuable officer. I don't think Sun Quan would want you killed by a fellow officer." Lu Meng said.

Gan Ning kept quiet, his gaze at his own feet.

"If you want 'Sunshine' to forgive you, you're gonna have to work a lot harder than you did convincing Ling Tong." Lu Meng said.

Gan Ning nodded, still looking at the ground. It wasn't easy gaining Ling Tong's trust. How the hell was he supposed to gain Ling Yun's trust?

**&**

Staring out into the horizon was a hobby for Ling Yun. Everyday, without fail, she would sit outside the Wu palace and just look in the distance, the clouds in the sky that looked like one of those paintings Xiao Qiao painted. When she was done, she would be sparring with her twin brother. But not today; because Ling Tong hasn't arrived home yet. Adjusting her back against the wall, her fingers tapped the ground one by one in a repeated fashion. It was already pitch dark and there was no sign of her brother. She wasn't too worried; her brother was a splendid fighter and one of Wu's most valuable officers. He had already been learning martial arts when the twins were 7, while she would watch in envy.

Ling Yun was quite a fine fighter herself. She had only started learning martial arts when she was 19 years old, but after training for 5 years, it's turned out worth her time and effort learning to fight. She was the toughest female fighter in Wu alongside the lady Sun Shang Xiang. Like the female pair of Ling Tong and Gan Ning, Ling Yun and Shang Xiang competed against each other of everything; who could defeat more enemies, who could complete their mission faster and successfully- basically they competed to see who the better warrior was while being close friends, just like Ling Tong and Gan Ning. Ling Yun, on the other hand, was not fond of Gan Ning a single bit.

The long haired brunette beauty was falling asleep waiting for her brother to return to the palace. The side of her chin was already touching her shoulder, and her grip on her nunchaku weapon released. The night was already destroying her energy.

**&**

_She waited patiently and eagerly to see the return of her father and twin brother. War was a dreadful thing. You'd never know when the last time you'd ever see your loved ones is. As she stood in the crowd of wives and children, she kept a lookout for her father and Ling Tong. Then, the crowd grew awfully quiet when lord Sun Jian stood on the highest steps of the Wu palace. He did not look very pleased. However, everyone was glad that their lord had returned home safely. _

_Please let father and brother be alright…She thought to herself. _

"_Citizens of Wu! We come back with victory in our veins!" Sun Jian started, throwing his fist into the air. Everyone cheered but herself. _

"_But…despite victory…we lost some of our most valuable men," He added. Ling Yun's heart twisted agonizingly. Her nails were practically starting to feel flesh. _

_She released herself when she saw that familiar face of her beloved brother. She squeezed her way through the crowd and when she saw him up close, with a few bruises on his cheeks, hands and legs, her hands flew over her mouth. But she wasn't upset. She was happy, so happy that he was alright. However, his eyes didn't look so alright. _

_As she saw more familiar generals, she noticed a few missing. Among them, her father. "These men have helped us to the road of victory," Sun Jian announced. More cheers. They seemed like drumbeats in her ear. Her father was not among the line of surviving generals. This was too wrong. No, she screamed in her head. She turned around, away from Ling Tong as he flashed an apologetic glance at his sister. As she walked out of the crowd, Ling Tong chased after her, past the crowd that cheered for him. _

_Tears rolled down her face like pearls. She had her hands on her eyes and she felt hot tears on her palms. _

"_Yun!" _

_She didn't stop walking._

"_Yun!" _

_That's when it was too much. She dropped to her knees, her arms rested on the ground and her face buried in her arms. Footsteps rushed to her side, slowly pulling her up. She pulled her own arm back, not wanting to stand up. "Come on, Yun." Ling Tong pleaded. He grabbed her by her shoulders and made her face him. _

"_I'm sorry," He apologized repeatedly. "I'm so sorry…"_

_Her face scrunched up and she buried her face into her palms, already wet and sticky. _

_In the distance, the twins could hear Sun Jian still speaking to the crowd loudly. "Although we lost the men you don't see present here…they will be deeply missed. They fought for Wu, they died for Wu. And they died to protect Wu,"_

_Ling Tong pulled her in for a hug and let her cry into his red attire. He patted her head, stroking her smooth, brown hair. The two said nothing as she cried, cried and cried while he could do nothing but spill a teardrop or two, and hold his sister close. _

"_They did not die for nothing. Their deaths are not in vain."_

**&**

"Yun?"

Ling Yun jumped. Then she calmed down when she saw it was her brother who called her up. "About time you showed up. Where were you?" She demanded.

"Visiting." Ling Tong said with a smirk. He got off his horse and got out his halberd. "Ready?" He asked.

"It's kinda dark to be sparring."

"We can practice in the dark. Not all missions are under sunlight, you know?"

Ling Yun smiled and grabbed her nunchaku.

**TBC**

**NEXT CHAPTER (2): CHANCE **


	2. CHANCE

HI

**HI! :D Thank you so much to my reviewers. Thanks for the honest reviews and the constructive criticism. It helped me to write more carefully. Do tell me if I have made another mistake. Well, here's chapter two for you lovely people! Dedicated to my reviewers and my reviewer at lunarspear x3**

**CHAPTER TWO; ****CHANCE**

Normally dawn would be the wake up call for Gan Ning to wake up. He would do his routine. He would run a hand through his messy dark hair while yawning, slump back on his bed for a few minutes before getting up again and stretching his arms and relaxing his neck muscles. Then he would walk over to the bathroom and wash his face, do what people do in bathrooms, change into his Wu attire with the black feathers, then grab his weapons and leave his bedroom to practice his skills alone in the field outside the Wu palace steps.

But not today. He had been up the whole previous night on his horse, riding around nowhere in particular. It wasn't because Gan Ning wanted to take his horse out; it was because the horse wouldn't shut up.

Gan Ning woke up at 12 instead; his eyes squinted as bright daylight shone through his bedroom window onto his pale face. He groaned and turned to his side so the sunlight couldn't burn his eyes through his eyelids. The weather was burning today. He could feel heat inside his stomach. Annoyed, he threw the blanket off, showing off his half nakedness. And even though he was half naked, he still felt like he was being put in an oven. "Damn it…" He cursed, kicking himself out of the bed.

He had a quick shower and threw on his clothes, grabbed his weapons and headed for the kitchen to grab a quick bite. He entered what seemed like hell as smoke clouded his vision and nose. How do these chiefs ever survive in the heat and breathing all this in? Well…they could ask him the same thing. Ling Tong was getting annoyed at watching Gan Ning wrap tobacco into a stick on a piece of paper and light it up to put in his mouth every hour. And obviously, Ling Tong's advice remained ignored.

Gan Ning used one of his short swords to pierce through a meat bun and exited the kitchen. Two chiefs starred at him as he exited, not turning back. One of them turned to look at the other whom in return, gave a shrug and went back to work after saying, "What do you expect? It's Gan Ning." The chief rolled his eyes and went back to work too.

Gan Ning took a seat at the steps of the palace. He pulled out the meat bun from the sword and chewed on it. It was now 12.30 in the morning, and he was already sweating as much as Huang Gai would on a normal summer day. The weather has never been anyone's friend. It was so unpredictable, it was laughable. After finishing the meat bun, he got up and readied his position.

"Practicing all by yourself?"

Gan Ning raised his eyebrow. When the voice registered into his head and dug out who the voice belonged to, Gan Ning cursed under his breath and wished he was back in the kitchen instead of here.

**&**

Ling Tong was bored. If death by boredom was possible, the young officer would be dead by now. He was supposed to be sparring with Lu Xun, but the young strategist had to go for a meeting with his fellow strategists. He knew that meant that another battle would be occurring in no time. He had asked Ling Yun to spar with him, but she said she had to do something important. And heck yes, she was doing something rather _important. _He sighed under the blistering heat as he chewed on a meat bun, doing nothing else but think about how different life would be if there was no war. Everybody would be thinking what it would be like, right?

Revenge was never a pretty thing. In those years he swore to avenge his father's death, he knew that a general had to complete an assigned task. He wasn't exactly assigned to avenge his father and kill Gan Ning, but he had assigned him_self_ to kill him.

**&**

"_Sir?" A soldier tapped his general's shoulder lightly. _

_Ling Tong's eyes were tightly shut. It burned to have tears in his eyes and with the help of the scorching sun in the sky; especially at this time of the day. Revenge was the only thing that was running through his mind. Revenge…kill…Gan Ning. He wanted justice to be done upon the man who had slain his father. And he would be more than happy to be the one to bring justice. _

"_Sir…?" _

_Ling Tong ignored his lieutenant general who was repeatedly trying to bring him back into solid reality. Gripping the nunchaku in his hand, he left an order for his lieutenant general to take charge of their mission. He had his own mission to accomplish, even if it would take ages to complete it. _

_Running was something Ling Tong excelled in. It was an advantage as he would be able to reach his already sworn nemesis in a short period of time. _

_And there stood Gan Ning. That son of a bitch Gan Ning. _

_He pulled out his sword from a Wu soldier before yelling with threat in his voice, "Who's next?!"_

_Ling Tong ran and smacked Gan Ning with the nunchaku straight on the head. Unfortunately, the blow was not strong enough to crack open the pirate's head. The pirate did, however, stumble to the ground. He could feel a light trickle of blood down his head as he stood up and grabbed his sword. _

"_Me." Ling Tong growled, stretching the nunchaku. _

"_You're pretty brave kid," Gan Ning chuckled, pointing his weapon directly at Ling Tong. The sunrays that hit the metal of his sword reflected into his eyes, and he had to squint. _

"_But are you as strong as you are brave? Idiot." Gan Ning added, earning a glare from Ling Tong. _

"_You're going to regret you ever met me…" Ling Tong charged at Gan Ning, a full blow on him. Gan Ning defended the attack, although he almost fell backwards. As soon as the officer with the nunchaku drew back his weapons, readying another attack, the pirate took a leap back and pointed his weapon a distance away from Ling Tong. _

"_Pretty tough ain't ya, pretty boy?" He almost laughed. _

"_You have not seen tough yet, bastard." Ling Tong cursed, charging forward. _

**&**

Ling Tong could laugh at how he behaved back then. How angry and determined he was to kill the man who was simply doing as he was instructed. Being known as 'The kid with vengeance on his mind' during that period of time was frustrating enough. He wanted to be known as somebody who cared for those he loved. Oh so much.

He could only wish now, that Ling Yun could see the good in Gan Ning instead of seeing only the bad past.

"What are you thinking?" Taishi Ci asked, standing beside Ling Tong.

Ling Tong shrugged, "About a lot of things. The usual stuff like how our lives would be like if there was no war. But mostly…I'm thinking how peaceful our inner lives would be if Ling Yun could change her perspective on Gan Ning." He explained.

The buff man beside him gave a small nod and a pat on the back. "She's a woman. Her feelings are deeper than a man's."

The younger officer managed a nod and a smile.

Taishi Ci 'coughed', making Ling Tong raise his eyebrow. "What's wrong?" He knew that kind of cough. The kind of 'cough' that started with 'You do know that…'

"You do know your sister has gone sparring with Gan Ning…right?"

**&**

Gan Ning ran the back of his hands across his sweaty forehead and replied, "Yuh, why?"

The slender figure stood in front of him, every strand of hair tied up into a neat ponytail, with only a streak of fringe at the middle of her face down her nose, her nunchaku in hands, ready to battle. "I just thought the weather was perfect for a sparring match between you and I. Without an audience. It's so perfect, I can almost laugh at it," The sarcasm made Gan Ning groan, "Then laugh."

Ling Yun chuckled, "I'd try to make this as quick as possible. And don't worry; I have no intentions of killing you. I just have an intention of wishing I could,"

"You and your brother share more than just the same blood and family tree. You share the sarcasm gene too." Gan Ning scoffed, putting down his weapons. If looks could kill, Gan Ning would make the perfect roast dinner for the other generals. Ling Yun's grip on her nunchaku tightened, and her eyebrows narrowed.

"You're quite the sarcastic person yourself I noticed," Ling Yun said, her free left hand on her hip. Gan Ning smirked, "Not half as sarcastic as you and your brother are, sunshine,"

"You have to learn to say an insult about me that does not include my brother, Gan Ning. And my name is Ling _Yun_, not sunshine." Ling Yun shot back.

"Please do not say your name out loud. I have a 'my mind' situation going on up here," Gan Ning said, putting his index finger to the side of his head. Ling Yun almost laughed, but not because he entertained her- well he did, but in the way which gave her great advantage to fling another insult in his face.

"Oh, that is _tragic_. We better get you to the healers immediately before 'your mind' becomes that of a ten year old," She crossed her arms, glaring harder at her sworn nemesis. Gan Ning glared at her. He shook his head and walked away from the sister of his sworn brother. "You scared or something, _sunshine_? Scared I'd knock the daylight out of your eyes?" She challenged, making him stop in his footsteps. A sly smile formed across her lips.

"I'm not fighting you and you know it. I will not harm you. It's my personal duty to protect you and your brother." He said, and continued walking. Ling Yun stayed glued to where she stood. Her expression did not change. She shook her head while smiling. "I don't need you to protect me. I can protect myself better than you and Tong can. I'm smarter, _sunshine. _And it's _my _personal duty to spar with you today. And I'd make sure I get to it." She said.

That was all it took for Gan Ning to turn back and face her like the man he was. "Fine." He muttered annoyingly, drawing his weapons. Ling Yun stretched the nunchaku; he could hear the metal being strained tightly. His weapons down, he said, "When you're ready. Just know that I'm going to be easy on y- ow!" Gan Ning took a few steps back, clutching at his stomach. Ling Yun remained at where she stood, swinging the nunchaku with a neutral expression on her face.

"This is supposed to be a _friendly _sparring match, sunshine!" Gan Ning pointed out, his sword doing the pointing.

"That _was_ friendly. You haven't seen _un_friendly," Ling Yun said, stretching out the nunchaku once again.

Gan Ning scowled and drew his swords to a defense mode as soon as he saw he swinging the weapon his best friend once used to fight him. Man…could they be anymore similar?

"And how can you expect me to be friendly when you weren't very friendly to my father?" Ling Yun finally brought up the subject. Gan Ning was hoping so badly that she wouldn't bring it up.

"I was doing what I was told to do, sunshine. How many times do I have to say this?" Gan Ning groaned tiredly while blocking her hits. She had already given him quite a hit on his stomach for starters. Another hit there and he would be on his knees. That wouldn't happen now, since Gan Ning is pretty good in defense.

"I'm not trying to kill you anyway. I'm just waiting for the day the great 'Gan Ning of the bells' gets slain on the battlefield." Ling Yun said coldly but calmly, then, she drew back her weapons for a massive hit to Gan Ning. Once again, he defended the hit, but had to step back a little due to the strength of the hit.

"Geez. You're a violent one." Gan Ning sweated.

Both noticed that Gan Ning has been doing nothing but defend.

This was starting to annoy Ling Yun.

_And I thought one violent woman was enough_ He thought to himself, referring to Sun Shang Xiang.

Gan Ning noticed that every hit she made made him back away a little bit, and he was now just a few feet away from the wall behind him.

"You were pretty violent with that arrow of yours back then." Ling Yun remarked, making Gan Ning roll his eyes.

"Look, sunshine. It's not my fault that senior Ling died from a single arrow!" Before he wished he could take back those words, he was pinned to the wall, choking as metal chains pressed against his neck with a smack to his face.

"Calm down! Will'ya? It wasn't meant to offend you!" Gan Ning was choking for air now.

"Of course it wasn't. It was meant to insult the dead!"

Ling Yun's face was inches away from his. She made sure he was staring right into her eyes. Whispering into his ear with words so cold, it almost made him freeze under the heat, she hissed, pressing the metal harder to his skin with each sentence.

"My naïve brother might have forgiven you for what you did to our father for a reason that everyone but me finds is an amazing thing. I, on the other hand, Gan Ning. I do _**not **_forgive your actions. You be thankful that I'm not allowed to kill you, Gan Ning. Or this move I just inflicted upon you would be the last you ever see and the very air you are breathing now would be knocked out of you, **permanently**."

With that, she released her grip upon him.

Gan Ning fell down on one knee, his other knee sitting up and his elbow resting there, gasping for air. Lu Meng wasn't wrong when he said Ling Yun was fast.

"Gan Ning!" A hand grabbed him to his feet.

"Your sister has gone mad." Gan Ning scowled, pushing past Ling Tong violently.

Ling Tong watched his best friend walk away until the figure grew smaller and smaller, and eventually, disappear. Ling Tong shook his head and followed his sister, who walked away slowly from the scene.

"What is up with you?" He asked calmly. He remained ignored. Ling Yun still walked on, like she always did whenever he asked her a question she wouldn't want to answer.

He stood in front of her and glared. "Did you have to do that?"

His twin glared back. "No. I should have done more." She brushed past his shoulder

"Why can't you just let go?!" Ling Tong raised his voice, making her jump a little.

"Why _did_ you?! You know what he did to father. You _saw_ what he did, didn't you?!" She shot back, tears welling up.

"Have you thought of how many people might have grudges against _you_ if they found out that _you _killed their son, husband, or _father_?" Ling Tong was close to shouting now.

Ling Yun just stopped at her footsteps.

"Don't you know it's because of people like _you_ that we are now facing war? It's because of people like you. People who are like me the last time. Just let it go! Why can't you give him a _chance_?" Ling Tong added.

After a long moment of silence, Ling Tong walked to his sister's side.

"I know you're angry that he killed father…but you can't have a grudge against him forever." He said softly.

Ling Yun blinked, and fresh tears poured down. She shot a killer glare at her brother.

"Or _can _I?" With that, she walked away, leaving Ling Tong alone in his thoughts.

**TBC**

**NEXT CHAPTER (3): WITHER**


	3. WITHER

Once again thank you for your review

**Once again thank you for your review. They make a smile across my face every time I read them. A special thank you for the constructive criticism because it helps me see my weak points and I'm working on improving my writing. **

**Shuwazi – About the "Yuh, why?" it's actually meant to be "Yes, why?" but I thought that Gan Ning would have a more…tough kind of voice and way of speaking so I changed it to "Yuh." Hope it won't confuse you! :D Thank you very much for your review. **

**Clogz- I will keep in mind what you told me. Yes, there will be flashbacks throughout every chapter, one or two, three. There will be flashbacks. :) You will be very surprised in a few more chapters. I agree girls hold longer grudges. I have a grudge against this girl in my class and I haven't spoken to her in ages. Thank you for your advice and your review. **

**Here's chapter three for you lovely people. And the story now gets more interesting as more about the characters are revealed. This will get even more interesting in the next few chapters. This is a more 'Flashback' chapter as there are three flashbacks. Not much dialogue in the present story. And I know Gan Ning hasn't been centralized much on; but in the next chapter, Gan Ning's own flashbacks will be added. :D **

**R/R X3**

**CHAPTER THREE: ****WITHER**

Ling Tong loved his sister with every beat of his heart. She was his own blood, his own sister, and his only sibling. She was very much like him with every emotion. Only this time, she wouldn't forgive Gan Ning. And this annoyed Ling Tong to the core; especially since she and Gan Ning's 'friendly' sparring match in which Yun almost choked Gan Ning to death. This episode has gotten Yun the reputation that she was not to be underestimated. The twins haven't spoken since her attempted murder earlier that afternoon.

Up in Gan Ning's room, it was now pitch dark outside and the young general watched quietly as the ex pirate rolled up some tobacco on a piece of paper. The air was very cold, and he felt his face hot whenever he saw Gan Ning's unfriendly, piercing eyes. Gan Ning was dangerous, no doubt. But that's what Ling Tong liked about Gan Ning. The danger about him; although he knew he could trust Gan Ning now. He earned it. But of course, being an ex pirate meant that people would never stop being afraid of you. Ling Tong wasn't afraid; he was rather…intimidated by those dangerous eyes.

"_How is this meeting so important that my presence is necessary?" Ling Tong asked Lu Meng as the two generals walked down the hallway to the meeting room. _

_The older general shrugged. "Maybe it's just important. There's this new general and-_

"_I know there's a new general. I just don't see how it really concerns me to be involved in a meeting." Ling Tong interrupted. _

"_Well…what Lord Sun Jian says…we do. So let's get to this meeting." Lu Meng snapped, tired of the younger general's constant complaining. He knew what was going on in that meeting and wasn't particularly sure that taking Ling Tong for the meeting was going to be a very good idea. _

_When the two generals entered the room, Lu Meng walked over to his seat while Ling Tong stood glued to the ground. Lu Meng starred at him pleadingly but remained ignored._

_._

_Sun Jian almost stumbled on his words. "Ling Tong…this is Gan Ning. He has been recruited by us to join us in trying to end the chaos. I hope there isn't a problem…?" _

_Ling Tong kept quiet. There were a million things he could pull out of his brain right now and thrust it in front of the pirate who stood before him, arms across each other, leaning against the wall behind him and looking straight at Ling Tong without a look of guilt. There was a tinge of sadness you could see in his eyes, however. But it definitely was not for Ling Tong. _

_The whole room was silent. _

"_I think we have already met, haven't we?" Gan Ning chuckled, making the other general fume. _

"_Oh, yeah. A real pleasant one, in fact." Ling Tong added sarcastically, finally speaking. _

_Lu Meng stood up from his seat and forced Ling Tong away from his spot to a chair in front of the meeting table. _

_The older general shot a glance at Sun Jian who returned a sympathetic look towards Ling Tong. Ling Tong however, shrugged it off, just nodding but without looking at his lord. It wasn't a form of disrespect, and Sun Jian did know how hard it must be right now for him. _

I should have killed him when I had the chance. _Ling Tong thought to himself. _

"_Please, Gan Ning. Take a seat." Sun Jian gestured to the only seat left- the seat opposite Ling Tong. Gan Ning noticed and shook his head rebelliously. _

"_Nah. I'd pass. I think I'll just stand here for a moment." Gan Ning tried his best to avoid any eye contact with the general who was sitting opposite 'his chair'. _

_If it wasn't for the many people here, Ling Tong would have pulled a dagger and stabbed it into that heartless son of a bitch's heart. _

_Sun Jian looked from Ling Tong, who glared at Gan Ning, to the pirate, who seemed oblivious to everything that was happening around him. _

_With a sigh, he started explaining the plans for the battle of the red cliffs. _

_**X**_

"_Oh sure. You didn't know they were going to drag Gan Ning in. 'What Lord Sun Jian says…we do!'" Ling Tong said sarcastically, clearly angry about everything that unfolded in front of him just minutes ago. _

_Lu Meng sighed. "Look, we had no choice. We need Gan Ning to help ensure we win this battle. And well…I know what he did. But let's be real here. You don't apologize to sons for killing their fathers on the battlefield, do you?" _

_Ling Tong kept quiet. _

"_None of us do. To Gan Ning, your father was just another enemy. Right now, you just need to agree with him." Lu Meng added. _

"_Agree with him?" Ling Tong shot his senior a sarcastic look. _

_Lu Meng gave him a pat on the back. "You can try." _

**&**

"It's not good for you." He said softly as Gan Ning took his cigar and put it in his mouth. Gan Ning shook his head, almost chuckling, and ignored his sworn brother.

Ling Tong didn't sigh. He didn't even shake his head in disappointment. He just starred at Gan Ning as he smoked the cigar. The fact that Gan Ning never took his advice just annoyed the crap out of him. He was getting irritated at how everybody was starting to piss him off. First, his sister, and now, his best friend. Nobody ever took his advice. And later on, they would regret that they never did.

The satisfaction of having somebody follow his advice was rare due to that. They might nod, they might say "Yes.". But they would never follow it.

While smoke covered his eyes and clouded his mouth, Gan Ning didn't take his eyes off Ling Tong. He reminded him a lot about Ling Yun. The resembling eyes, the resembling nose and cheeks.

Gan Ning chuckled softly, so soft that Ling Tong couldn't hear him.

It was rather difficult to say how these two friends were feeling and thinking right then.

But then it became clear.

Gan Ning shifted nearer to Ling Tong, the cigar still in his mouth. The other general just stared at him without moving. The pirate leaned in towards Ling Tong.

Ling Tong tried shifting backwards, only to find he was against the wall with nowhere to move. But then, he became brave. Although he didn't react to Gan Ning just yet, he pulled the cigar, on its way to being burned out, out of Gan Ning's mouth and chucked it aside, not caring where it landed.

Gan Ning didn't smile; and neither did Ling Tong when the ex pirate moved his lips to Ling Tong's. Both, however, were smiling on the inside, guiltily.

Theirs was a brief, electrifying moment of passion that lasted a few seconds before both men pulled themselves away from each other, but wanting a longer kiss.

The cigar that landed on the ground just inches away from them burned out and lay forgotten, for the first time in their lives.

**&**

Ling Yun was burning the midnight oil, just lying down on her bed and looking into two swords that she owned. Those were beautiful, long, twin swords that were shaped straight, but the killing tip curved like a scimitar. Those were the weapons she used when she went out on the battlefield. Those were the weapons that killed hundreds of enemies. Those were the blood stained weapons that still shone even with the amount of blood splattered across its shiny surface.

Those were the weapons Ling Cao had given her for her 16th birthday. Of course, he hadn't allowed her to use the swords because he was afraid she would get hurt. He gave her those swords because they were beautifully designed and made. They were more like a display set of swords; although they were made for killing.

**&**

_She stood speechless, looking at the pair of beautiful twin swords that lay right in front of her in a box. Their handles were a light brown, and to make it more attractive, the handle was shaped like a dragonfly that wasn't drawn but rather, had its shape carved onto the metal. And at the edge of the swords was a red bundle of fox fur tied up around it. _

_They were for her. _

_Almost immediately, she pounced on her father, hugging him so tightly, not wanting to let go of him. _

"_Thank you! Thank you!" She repeatedly said._

_Her father laughed, patting his daughter's back and smiling with no end. It was so sweet to see his daughter laugh and smile. She loved the gift so much. _

_Ling Cao put his hands on her shoulders and looked right into those eyes she inherited from him. _

"_It might be yours. But you cannot use it to fight. This is just a display for you to admire. Unless someone breaks into our house when your brother and I are not home, do not use them. Am I clear?" He instructed. _

_Yun smiled widely and nodded. In her mind, however, she knew she had to try those weapons somehow._

**&**

She cleared her throat and placed the swords back below her bed, letting them lie there. She wouldn't use them anymore, she decided. She'd leave it as a display piece, just the way Ling Cao had originally instructed her. _Why did I have to be so rebellious then? _She was biting her bottom lip harder as she turned to look in the mirror.

She could swear that for less than a split second, she saw the reflection change to someone familiar: Her mother.

Ling Yun stumbled back at the reflection that gave her a weak smile. She fell onto her butt and lay against the wall behind her. Her heart had started to beat faster and her mind started racing with so many thoughts she herself wasn't sure what exactly she was thinking. She was shocked and frightened at the sudden 'illusion' in front of her.

Suddenly the room was so quiet. When she stood up again, she walked slowly to the mirror, gulping as if she was a seven year old afraid of opening her cupboard due to the fear of monsters hiding in there.

She looked in the mirror. Nothing but her own reflection stared back against her.

She took a few seconds to look at herself. She looked at the clip in her hair, decorated with a rose and a dragonfly on it. It was light and gold, with semi precious stones as the eyes of the dragonfly and raindrops on the rose. She pulled out the clip and cupped it in her hands, holding it to her heart.

**&**

"_Yun Wen?" _

_She lay in her bed, doing nothing but looking at the stars. She had just seen the stars from outside with her father. She remembered when she and Ling Tong asked their father why there were fewer stars as the days went by, her father answered: "Because of the chaos. Every time a war brews, a star dies. Maybe when the chaos ends, the stars will be reborn. If we see a shooting star one day, we can make a wish. It will come true." _

_Her mother let herself in, taking small, steady steps. Ling Yun smiled at the sight of the beautiful woman who was walking to her. She sat upright and straight, the way she was taught to, although she was of no imperial rank. Her mother always told her that she should behave a woman is supposed to behave. _

_Qing Han sat herself down beside her daughter whom just turned 16. She was starting to feel as if she was losing her baby girl already. It seemed just like yesterday when she was cradling newborn Ling Yun along with Ling Tong. It seemed just like hours ago, even, when Ling Yun ran to her complaining that Ling Tong was scaring her. One of these days, her daughter would be married. However, she knew she might not live until that day comes. _

"_Happy birthday." She whispered, hugging her daughter. _

_She patted her daughter's head, smoothing her fingers through the smooth strands of hair. _

_She pulled out a box and handed it to her daughter. _

_Ling Yun opened the box and marveled at the present. A hair clip. A beautiful hair clip with a golden dragonfly on a golden rose. _

"_My little dragonfly… You're growing up too quickly. Happy birthday, I love you." It was scribbled in Chinese on a piece of paper the hair clip held onto. Tears formed beneath the young girl's eyes. Her mother has always called Ling Yun 'Her little dragonfly' because her daughter was so quick and swift. _

"_Mother…it's beautiful!" She squeaked, hugging her mother again. _

_After all the thanks, Qing Han was aching to ask her daughter the question. And she finally did. She asked Ling Yun this question every time her birthday came by. _

"_Yun Wen, what do you intend to do besides being a woman when you grow older?" She asked._

_Ling Yun thought for a moment. _

"_I want to assist in bringing the end to the chaos. In any way possible. Preferably, I would like to stop pirates from raiding Wu ships. They're taking away all of our supplies." She said seriously. _

_Qing Han nodded, smiling. _

"_Do you want to know what I wanted to do when I was your age?" She asked. _

_  
Ling Yun perked up. Qing Han had never asked her that question before. She nodded, prompting her mother to go on. _

"_I wanted to what you wanted to be when you were five." _

_Ling Yun squinted. "And what was that?"  
_

_Qing Han looked taken aback. "You don't remember what you wanted to be?" _

_Ling Yun thought hard, and then she finally remembered. _

**& **

She blinked at the mirror. Fresh tears never ran out for Ling Yun.

She walked over to her bed and blew off the candle.

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**NEXT CHAPTER (4): ****BURNED**


	4. BURNED

1

**THANK YOU all for the reviews. Like I've said, it's really encouraging to know that people enjoy the work you spent time on.**

**SORRY that I haven't been able to update these few days. But here it is! And it's just a tad shorter than the other chapters. I've been really busy lately but I thought I should just update a quite important chapter as in this chapter, we get to know more about our favorite Chinese pirate. **

**CHAPTER FOUR; ****BURNED**

Ling Tong woke up on the wrong side of the bed. He was shocked, still, at what had happened the night before. For one, he knew he wasn't queer. And he knew Gan Ning was straight too. But what was it that had triggered that passionate kiss which made both lusting for more? He was up with his clothes still on- a relief for him and probably for the ex pirate who was still deep asleep. It wasn't too good to be too close to somebody; he always told himself. He wasn't one who liked passionate love affairs. And never has he even had a normal relationship with a woman.

But with a man? That was just ridiculous. What would happen to them if somebody found out the both of them kissed? For certain nobody would go up to them and say: "Now we definitely know you two are cool with each other."

Ling Tong didn't want to know what could or would happen if they were found out. Maybe it was just a moment of awkwardness and intimacy. Maybe it was rather natural. He decided he would just tell Gan Ning calmly that this was a mistake & it wasn't meant to be. He was sure Gan Ning would understand, right? Maybe Gan Ning would intend to do the same when he woke up.

Right now Ling Tong's mind was spinning. His hair hung loose from the rubber band that bound the long strands. He felt like just passing out any moment and forget that happened. Maybe it was all just a dream. Maybe it didn't happen. It _was _rather late when it happened. Maybe he was simply dreaming a very wrong dream.

_No, it was definitely real. _He thought.

He stood up and walked out of the room, unsure of what to do. Maybe he would just tell Gan Ning it was all wrong. Besides, Gan Ning's true feelings didn't lie with him.

Letting out a soft sigh, he tied his hair back together and as he made his way out of the palace halls. His fingers lingered around the large jade rings around his waist as he touched each of their smooth and hard surfaces. The sun wasn't as warm as it was yesterday, and it was 12.30 already. Yesterday, the sun was a potential murderer but today, it seemed to have become a good 'person'.

**&**

Gan Ning was actually already awake when Ling Tong woke up. He had his back facing Ling Tong and his eyes closed. The room was deadly quiet when Ling Tong left, leaving Gan Ning to hear only his footsteps and nothing more but his own breathing. His slow, steady breathing. He too, could not believe what happened yesterday. And he was the one who leaned in to kiss Ling Tong. He knew what they did was wrong; better yet, the _intension _of _him _doing it to his best friend.

Lucky, it hadn't gone more than just kissing.

Ling Tong must have been so angry with him. He sighed and rolled onto his back. His eyes looked up at the ceiling, a dove shaped ornament dangled around, moving as if it was flying in the sky. His breathing got slower and his eyes started to droop as he focused on the dangling dove. As soon as he saw that dove, it's like nothing else mattered- even Ling Tong. He was drifted into his past and he never ever wanted to think about that dove; but sometimes he just couldn't help it.

**& **

_Nine years old and little Gan Ning was already fascinated with the ocean and water. With his father a pirate, he would always have to follow his father onto his boat and act like a real pirate. The boat was his home. _

_Swinging a stick he had found from the ground at the boat deck, he imitated the sounds of swords clanging against one another. At a flour bag, he thrust the stick into it; rendered useless as the stick wasn't able to stab through the cloth. Gan Ning smirked at the useless stick. "I'm going to be as strong as that flour bag when I grow up!" He said loudly to his mother, who sat near her son watching him entertain her. _

"_I'd be unbreakable and unstoppable!" He took the stick from the ground and raised it in the air. His mother smiled and strolled towards him, patting him on the head. She ruffled his hair, which annoyed him whenever someone did that. _

"_Of course you will." She said, kneeling down so that she was the same height as her son. _

"_You'd be just like your daddy." She added, pulling him into her for a motherly hug. _

_Gan Ning wanted to shake his head and push her away. Not because she was hugging him. He wanted her to know that his father wasn't the man he looked up to. Gan Ning looked up to no man. He looked up to nobody. _

_His mother didn't know what his father would do to him every time he appeared at the doorstep looking as drunk as a pig. Gan Ning blinked, not allowing any tears to flow down. He wished he could runaway from here. But how could he bear to leave his mother? His sweet, tender loving mother?_

_How could he stand to tell his mother about his treatment from his father without making her think he was just having a nightmare? She wouldn't believe that the man she loves would abuse the son they bore, would she? _

_He looked at the bruise on his wrist, still big and ripe. His mother had asked him earlier how he got it and he got away with lying that he banged it by accident on a barrel. _

_All of a sudden he didn't feel so unbreakable and unstoppable. He felt breakable and he felt stoppable. _

_Gan Ning sighed and pulled away from his mother slowly and sat on a barrel. _

_His mother stood next to him, an arm wrapped around his shoulder, gently rubbing her stomach. They stayed like this for a while until his mother broke the silence for them. _

"_What do you want to call your sibling?" She asked in a whisper. _

_Gan Ning raised his eyebrows. "But I don't know the gender…"_

_His mother smiled, ruffling his hair once more. _

"_What if it's a little brother?" _

_Gan Ning tried to think. He was never good at thinking of names. _

"_Maybe…little fighter? I don't know!" He exclaimed, making his mother burst into a fit of giggles. _

"_I was thinking of a refined name…something smooth and nice. I would very much like to have a girl though…" His mother thought. _

_Gan Ning smiled. He wouldn't mind having a little sister. _

"_I was thinking of something that began with Yu…" She drifted off into wonder. _

"_Yu Chen sounds pretty cool for a girl." Gan Ning suggested._

_His mother perked up and ruffled his hair yet again. "Darling…that's a beautiful name. Yu Chen…" _

_That night, after his mother went to sleep, Gan Ning had to wait for his father to return to the ship. He was afraid of what might happen since it was getting late. Afraid that his father would return home drunk. He was afraid of being blamed for something he didn't do in his father's drunken state. _

_And then there he appeared. Stumbling as he walked, a bottle in one hand, the other swaying like a woman. With the bottle in the hand, he pointed it to Gan Ning. _

_With a fist upon his face, Gan Ning fell to the ground, tasting the pang of blood in his mouth. Gan Ning embraced for a blow of glass upon his head. But instead, he was lifted off the ground and thrown against the wall, hands grabbing against the skin of his neck._

"_Whyr' ya up so late, eh? What're ya doin'?" The voice asked in a violent whisper._

_Gan Ning's eyes welled up as he withered under his father's strength. "Daddy, you're drunk again!" He managed to say while tasting the bitter blood. _

_His father was taken aback for a bit, before gritting his teeth and laying another punch across his son's cheek. _

"_Y'dare to answer me in that way?" His father was practically shouting now. _

"_What are you doing?" _

_That voice. Gan Ning froze and so did his drunk father who was still swaying. Gan Ning's mother stood in the hallway, looking tired and angry. _

_She didn't wait for her husband's reply. Instead she ran to Gan Ning's aid, wiping the blood off his mouth, telling him it's okay, that she was there. _

"_Step away from th'pest, lady." His father used the bottle to point at her. _

_Angered, his mother stood up and in a flash, a slap sprang from her hands. _

_That was the beginning of the end. _

**&**

Ling Yun twisted her long straight hair round and round her finger, not thinking of anything in particular. Yesterday's events only made her wish she really had killed him. Lord Sun Jian had found out about it but made no form of punishment. He had let her off with a stern warning about attacking fellow generals, although he sympathized with her just like he did with Ling Tong.

And thinking about what happened before she slept only made her want to break down and cry. As a girl, even the most tom boyish girl would break down at the thought of a lost, loving mother.

And thinking about her father was the same.

She hated Gan Ning for all he had done to her. She trusted him. She put her faith in him. She put her _dreams _in him. And what he did was to turn around and stab her in the back. She wanted to stab him right through the heart despite all they had been through. She wanted to watch him die a slow, painful death.

You could say her intention of becoming a general was to watch him die on the battlefield. It _was _one of her intentions and the others being the usual 'I want to defend my kingdom' kind of reasons.

She wasn't particularly doing anything now but sitting opposite the pond surrounded by a rectangle of standing poles, watching the fish in the pond swim around in circles again and again.

She was waiting for Ling Tong. Again.

Sighing, she threw a stone into the pond, watched it skid across a few inches before it finally sank inside the water. When something tapped her shoulder, she was quick to withdraw her weapons and lunge it.

"Woah, steady! It's me." Ling Tong defended, his halberd blocking the way of the nunchaku in her hand.

She rolled her eyes and withdrew her weapons. "You of all people should know better than to sneak up on me like that."

She blinked away and took a step back.

"Sorry…I uh…I'm not feeling well today." Ling Tong lied.

She could sense the nervousness in his voice. He was talking about something totally different. She didn't say anything about his health.

"If something is wrong with you, please ask Zhuge Liang to reverse it." She cracked, earning a scowl from her brother.

He blinked and turned away from her. He really wasn't in the mood to deal with her sarcasm gene he shared with her. Whatever he did couldn't make him forget about what Gan Ning and him had done yesterday night. It was almost enough to make him go crazy and go through the rooftop.

"So uh…I heard that we have a new female general coming around sometime today." Ling Tong started, both aware that he wasn't interested in sparring.

"Yeah, hooray. It's about time we had another female fighter." Ling Yun smirked.

Ling Tong was going to ask her if he knew the name of the new female general but he didn't. He was starting to break into sweat.

Ling Yun got worried. He really wasn't looking good. She put her hand on his shoulder but it got shrugged off. Scowling, she blinked at him and crossed her arms.

"Are you feeling alright?" She asked with concern after a long period of silence.

Ling Tong managed a small nod. He thought that sparring with her was going to make him feel better. And before they even started, he was starting to feel worse. She reminded him of Gan Ning. The hatred she refused to let go off and even he didn't know why she hated him so much besides murdering daddy.

"I need some time…alone." He said, walking away from her.

**& **

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**NEXT CHAPTER(5): BROKEN **

**Okay, in the next chapter, a new character will be introduced. She doesn't play as big a role as Ling Yun but I had some ideas for the story that would need another character. And in the next chapter, the supporting characters start to make their 'grand' appearance. With more lines. That includes little xunnie boy x3**

**R/R, lovelies! **


	5. BROKEN

CHAPTER FIVE; BROKEN

**Hi lovelies! Chapter Five is in the house!**

**So anyway, my lovely friend Tayloere has given me the idea to make the new OC another main character and I thought that it would fit too. So right now, there are four main characters but the new character (Which you will find out who she is) has just been introduced for now!**

**Oh, do not fret; the storyline and everything I planned is still the same. It's just that I've added a new main character. :D **

**Enjoy**

**CHAPTER FIVE; BROKEN**

_I wanna love, I wanna leave. I want you to love me; I want you to leave me._

**&**

"If I asked you a question, would you reply me properly?" Sun Shang Xiang asked, studying an arrow in her hand, with its head broken and rusty, dangling from a single line of wood.

"Depends." Ling Yun simply said, stretching her arms.

"What would you say if I told you I liked someone?" She asked softly.

Ling Yun raised her eyebrow at the soft tone of her voice. "It depends on who it is. Look, I'm really in no mood to talk about boys right now."

Shang Xiang broke her gaze from the broken arrow and glared at her. "That is because you're _never _in the mood to talk about men." She pointed out, earning an eye roll from the older girl.

"No, Xiang. I'm never in the mood to talk about _boys. _Men, however, I don't even want to think about them. Don't get me started on _talking _about men. A woman such as myself; who plans to end the chaos, has no interest in talking about the opposite gender simply known as: male." Ling Yun said.

"End the chaos? You can't even end your own chaos." Shang Xiang said, referring to Gan Ning. That sentence made Ling Yun freeze at where she stood. Great, now Shang Xiang knew what happened yesterday too.

"Why don't you end it then, princess?" Ling Yun snapped. Shang Xiang looked taken aback. "I don't mean to ruin the day for you or anything but- what would you do if your father was killed? What would you do if you knew who the man was? What would you do if he was a man you actually _trusted_?"

When Shang Xiang was quiet, Ling Yun sighed. "Who is it…?" She reluctantly asked, making Shang Xiang beam with excitement.

"I'm your best friend, right?" She laced her fingers together

Ling Yun nodded.

"So you won't hate me if I told you?"

Ling Yun shook her head with a slight shrug, rolling her eyes.

Shang Xiang took a deep breath and anticipated for a scream and a beating when she told Ling Yun who it was. "I think Ning is kind of interesting."

However, Ling Yun didn't flinch. She just starred at Shang Xiang with no change of expression. In a matter of seconds, however, she chuckled. Shang Xiang raised her eyebrows at the older girl who was now laughing. "What? So do you hate me or not?"

Ling Yun shook her head and after she was finished with laughing, she walked to the door. "No, Xiang. I don't hate you. I just feel sorry for you. You have absolutely no idea what Gan Ning is like."

**&**

Ling Tong's peaceful 'alone' time was shattered when Lu Meng nudged him, announcing that the new general had arrived. With a scowl, he forced himself to follow the older general and leave 'alone' time for later. He really did not understand why everything concerned him. Shouldn't the royalty be the ones actually greeting the new general?

"Before you throw your sarcasm on me, please note that this time, it was really an order from Sun Jian." Lu Meng explained while leading the way to the entrance gate.

"I'm not in a sarcastic mood today, you're spared." Ling Tong said.

The two Sun brothers and Lu Xun were standing in the far distance away from the two generals, greeting a young lady. They were shaking hands with each other with a smile and a nod. Ling Tong immediately wanted to turn back as he wasn't interested. But since royalty _was_ there, he couldn't turn back to 'alone' time.

Sun Ce caught sight of the two generals and his face lightened. "Ah! There you two are!" He called out in his bright, energetic voice, taking a step towards them with his arms open wide, as if greeting long lost friends.

Sun Ce took a step to the side, and put a hand on the young lady's shoulder. "This is Min Xing Yi. She's going to be serving beside you, Lu Meng and your sister for our next battle." He said to Ling Tong proudly.

Ling Tong and Lu Meng nodded. Ling Tong smiled at the young lady, whose face was a bright as the moon when it was pitch dark at night and eyes as dark as the night. Lu Meng took a step forward with a formal hand greeting. "I am Lu Meng." He said, nodding. "And that's Ling Tong." He added.

She nodded, smiling as she greeted them with a fist in her hand.

"What brings you to serve under Wu, Xing Yi?" Ling Tong asked.

"My father, Min Kang, used to serve under Lord Sun Jian, Master Ling Tong." She replied politely, slowly putting her hands back to her side. Her voice was soft and gentle, the polar opposite of Ling Yun's, Ling Tong noticed. "It has been my only dream to continue what my father has done." She added.

Lu Meng raised his eye brow at the name of Min Kang. "Oh, Min Kang," He started in realization, earning the attention of all four other generals. "I used to work with your father when I was a few years younger than you are. He was like a father to me. He is greatly honored and remembered by me." He added, earning a smile from the new girl.

"Thank you very much, Master Lu Meng." She bowed her head.

"My father has met her, and he said she is quite the fighter…quite similar to Min Kang." Sun Ce said. "I do hope it doesn't add to the fire between my sister and yoursister." He added jokingly to Ling Tong.

"Don't worry; I don't think Xing Yi is _that _competitive, right?" Ling Tong turned to the young female general, who looked like she wanted to hide, nodding repeatedly.

Ling Tong noticed her shyness and gave her a soft smile, and spoke to her as if she was a cat he did not want to scare away. "Hey, there's no need to be scared. I'm actually really nice." He said proudly folding his arms across each other. This did not help much as the girl gave another shy smile.

"Uh yeah, he is. He is also very sarcastic. He's the most famous guy for that around here." Sun Quan added, smiling broadly, earning a glare from the other general.

"Then what is Ling Yun?" Sun Ce poked in, earning a chuckle from Lu Meng and Sun Quan.

"Ling Yun…?" Xing Yi asked, unsure.

"Ling Yun is Ling Tong's twin sister. You'd meet her. She's one fiery girl." Lu Meng explained.

"She is quite an interesting character, though." Lu Xun finally spoke after being left out for a few moments, making the other generals spin around to look at him, obviously unaware that Lu Xun was there all along.

"You still haven't met the other generals, Xing Yi. You would be surprised at how they behave differently from the battlefield." Sun Quan said.

_Gan Ning is someone different…_ Ling Tong thought to himself, sighing and wishing he could turn things back. In the corner of his eyes, he saw Gan Ning. Sitting in the barley field, probably lost in his thoughts.

**&**

_He pulled the reins of his horse backwards, making the horse neigh loudly. With another pull, the horse brought him forward into the forest. His halberd already had the blood splatters of several slain men, and even his face had a few drops of blood from those whose lives he took away. Right now, he had a mission to complete. He let Zhang Liao get away. But he would catch him. He had to. _

_His horse let out a sharp neigh and before he knew it, he couldn't notice fast enough that he was flying through the air and landing on his back, his attire getting soil and mud all over it. The final landing was his left arm smacking against a tree bark. He grunted at the agonizing pain that shot up his left arm, kneeling up with his right hand on his left arm. He looked up, the sunlight blinding his eyes. What was going on? What happened?_

_He saw his horse lying down, with an arrow sticking up. Shot. His horse had been struck by an arrow. Narrowing his eyes, he tried to stand up, only to fall back to his knees. Even his feet hurt._

"_Sorry about the pony, no hard feelings, right?" A chuckle came, sending a tinge of fear into Ling Tong. _I am done for.

_He tried standing up again, this time it was successful. And as the sounds of throttle approaching him, he quickly grabbed his halberd and prepared for a blow to his weapon. The blow was so hard that he dropped to his knees once again, using all his might to protect himself from the sword that was ready to cut his head off. _

_He groaned at the pain of his left arm that shot pain through his brain, making him feel drowsy all of a sudden, with the help of the sun burning his eyes. _Shit.

"_Getting weaker, aren't you? Well, General Ling Tong, as much as I pity taking the life of one so young in his days, it is my duty to get rid of you." The man was revealed to be Yue Jin, one of Zhang Liao's officers. _I am screwed.

_With a push of his sword, Yue Jin broke Ling Tong's defense, causing the young General to fall onto his back and his halberd thrown behind. Yue Jin brought his sword up and tossed his bow away, ready to stab right through Ling Tong's heart. Struggling to get up, Ling Tong was saying his last words in his head. _This is the end of me.

_He barely shut his eyes when he felt hot blood spill all over his body with a single sound of a force into an object. _I'm dead. _But he wasn't. He was still very much alive and breathing. He reached for his face, the skin of his fingers touching the blood on his face. He panted as he opened his eyes full again, and almost twitched at the sight in front of him._

_An arrow between his eyes was all it took for Yue Jin to fall off his horse, dead. _

_He was dead. Ling Tong was saved. But who was it? He struggled up to his feet, brushing the dirt off his sleeves and breathed heavily. He gulped and his eyes darted from left to right and up and down to see who could have been the one who saved him. _

"_You are such an idiot." Said the gruff voice, making Ling Tong spin around and glare at him. It was Gan Ning who saved him? That couldn't be true. Why would Gan Ning rescue him anyway? It was the most abnormal thing for someone like Gan Ning to do. _

"_You?" Ling Tong narrowed his eyebrows. _

_Gan Ning chuckled and lowered his bow. "Figured you've never seen me handle a bow." He said. _

_Ling Tong kept quiet. This man who had killed his father actually saved him. Did he owe him any gratitude? _

"_By the way; that wasn't to make up for me killin' y'father." Gan Ning took a step forward to Ling Tong. Ling Tong glared at him in return. He couldn't believe the nerve of Gan Ning. _

"_Then what was it for?" Ling Tong asked, grabbing his halberd off the ground with his back facing Gan Ning. He didn't want to look at that face. _

"_Kill your enemies, protect your allies." Gan Ning said. _

_That was enough to make Ling Tong's heart feel loose. He turned around without his usual sarcastic expression. His face was serious. That line just made him want to forget about everything that happened. _

**&**

Gan Ning was the last person anyone thought would ever want to have quiet time by himself. Everybody thought that more than half his life was spent on training and battling. While some made preparations for the next battle, Gan Ning would always be sparring with somebody; normally Ling Tong. He shut his eyes. Now Ling Tong was on his mind. Everything about yesterday night _again. _If Ling Yun found out, the two of them would be beaten into next Sunday- or maybe the year 2008.

_If my mother was here…she would know exactly what I am to do. _Gan Ning still had his eyes shut tightly. He wanted to speak to Ling Tong, but he didn't have the guts to. So many things were running through his head. His past, Ling Yun, Ling Tong. Everything that had to do with him was running through and wasn't stopping. He opened his eyes and pulled out a wheat and studied its golden texture, smooth and unbroken, unlike his bitter past.

**&**

"_What did you do to him?!" Gan Ning's mother was screaming now, saddened and betrayed by her husband's treatment to their son. Gan Ning was shocked at what his mother just did. _

_In a flash, his father grabbed his mother's wrist and pulled her to face him. "Ma!" Gan Ning cried._

"_Silence, y'little wretch! I make t'rules around 'ere… I decide what goes on! You'd very well go back in before I do somethin' unimaginable!" His father spat at Gan Ning, his words were almost inaudible._

_His mother shook her head in disbelieve, tears pricking in her eyes. She could barely see. She blinked and the pearls dripped down. She looked at her son pleadingly. "Go. Now." She whispered, smiling through the tears._

"_Look at me, filth!" His father pulled her to face him again. She groaned at his grip on her, tight and painful. _

"_Gan Ning, __**go**__!" She shouted, struggling from his grip on her. _

_Gan Ning wiped the tears from his eyes and shook his head. "Let her go!" He pleaded his father. "Let her go, please! Do what you want to me, daddy, just let Ma go!" He raised his voice. _

"_Ya want me to let 'er go? Fine!" His father shouted hysterically, practically throwing his mother on the floor with all his strength. His mother shrieked at the pain that shot through her body. _

"_Ma!" He cried loudly and ran to her aid. Before he could reach her he was grabbed by his arm. _

"_I let 'er go. Now I'd do what I want to do, remember…?" His father grabbed his arm harder, making Gan Ning cry out loud. _

"_Stop it!" His mother cried weakly, standing up and walking to the two. _

_With his bottle raised, he brought it down on his own son, unaware of what he was doing. Unaware of the pain he would bring to him. _

_Unaware that he actually hurt his wife instead. He glanced at the bottle in his hand, broken and bloody. Through the green of the glass he saw the woman he loved on the ground, her head battered and bloody and his son shaking her, screaming and crying. But what did he care? He was drunk, nothing mattered until he was sober. _

_Gan Ning had to taste the bitter blood and the salty tang of tears. "Ma!"_

"_Ma!" _

**&**

Blinking and biting his lip, Gan Ning ran a hand down his face. Everything that happened those many years ago was still fresh in his mind. Only that this time, there were no more tears. Everything was over. The past had passed. Now it was the present.

"Heya."

Gan Ning looked up to see Ling Tong looking over him. He didn't know if he was supposed to smirk the way he always did or if he was supposed to be running for his life. But he just smirked and got himself off the ground.

"About yesterday…I'm…really embarrassed about it." Ling Tong started.

Gan Ning nodded. "I'm sorry. Must've put you in some kinda bad position, yeah?"

Ling Tong shrugged and nodded at the same time. "Uh…they want you to meet the new general." He changed the subject.

"Oh, right. I'd be doin' that in a moment. Just uh…how is he like?" Gan Ning asked.

"He is a girl." Ling Tong smirked. "Her name's Min Xing Yi. Apparently her father used to be a general under Wu. I'm not sure about anything else though. Appearance wise she's really pretty. Really shy too. She's gonna be joining us in the next battle." He explained.

"Interesting." Gan Ning nodded.

"What were you doing by yourself here?" Ling Tong asked.

Gan Ning pulled out the dove pendant from his pocket and looked at it. His eyes focused on it and Ling Tong's image became a blur. It's light wooden color matched the colors of the barley field. It was beautiful and matching. And unlike his heart, it was perfect.

"Just…reminiscing about my broken past."


	6. TRUSTED

CHAPTER SIX; TRUSTED

**Thank you, Thank you, THANK YOU to you lovely reviewers! Thanks so much!**

**In this chapter, you get to see a little clue on a certain 'past' between two certain people. (: **

**And the flashback is quite a 'fun' one. :D R/R, please x3**

**CHAPTER SIX; TRUSTED**

Ling Yun had been roaming the palace premises all by herself for the past few hours, taking very small, slow steps each time. She did the occasional normal steps from time to time. She really wasn't angry about Shang Xiang developing a crush on Gan Ning. She was just ridiculed by the decision that the Lady Sun made that Gan Ning was 'interesting'. With a sigh, she made her way to the library, where peace and quiet was really there. She pushed the door open and made her way into a hallway full of books of all sort.

She was supposed to meet the new general, but she didn't bother to. She wasn't in the mood to. She decided that later that day would be a better time to meet her with all the food at dinner and everyone else there- including Gan Ning.

Her eyes traced along the several titles of books available on a shelf. She needed a book to take her mind off the fact that her best friend liked her enemy. She needed some sanity away from the crazy world outside the library. She needed time on her own since nobody was particularly free. Her brother was acting weird and needed time on his own, Shang Xiang had just sent her into a stage of mere shock; who else would she talk to? She rarely spoke to the others.

A particular title entitled: _Collision of love and hate _had caught her attention. It sounded very familiar. She pulled out the dusty red, plain gold lettered book off and waved her hand to get the dust away from her eyes. The last time she had ever had the time to come into a library was months ago. Luckily for her, she wasn't a strategist or an extremely important leading general; or else she would be stuck inside the meeting room right now.

She settled herself onto a comfortable reading chair, flipping the cover page. There on the first page, printed the title again, with an author's name on it. The name: Wen Qing Han. Her mother had written this book. Flipping her long hair that blocked her eyes behind her back, she slowly turned the page to the first chapter. She knew her mother was an author, but she had never read any of her mother's books. She was surprised to find a title in the Wu library.

As she read the chapters, she began to realize how much the story character resembled her current state. And by the end of reading the entire story, finished in the short period of an hour, she was already close to tears, yet again. With the book in her lap and its jacket curled up, she had her hands on her forehead. The story was just like her; but its ending was not anything like she had imagined. Her mother had crafted a masterpiece of a book not read by many.

With a few tears running down her face, she began to immerse in a soft sob, wishing that her life was completely different. Wishing she wasn't even born into this world. She would rather have been an animal roaming around China or a tiger serving under the imperial Han.

"Ling Yun?"

She shot right up from her crying position to see another young lady just a year older than her standing in front of her with a worried look on her face. It was Lady Da Qiao, without fans by her side, walking towards her. Ling Yun managed a smile while she wiped her tears.

Da Qiao took a seat beside her friend and gave her a look in the eye. "Is everything alright?" She asked.

Ling Yun looked at the book, at how much it was like her, and then she looked back at Da Qiao. "Fine…" She lied.

Da Qiao sighed and put her hand on Ling Yun's lap, putting on a motherly voice although they were both of the same age group. "Yun, I know you're not fine. Why don't you tell me about everything? You've been rather different lately and it's starting to worry me. You cry all the time. You're my friend and I don't want you all worked up on yourself. It isn't healthy to keep everything inside you."

Ling Yun gave a weak smile. "If I say it out, it'd all come out wrong. Then you'd think I'm weird and everything…If I really told you why I cry all the time you will never look at me the same way. Even my brother doesn't know why I cry all the time and get worked up so much. I think it's starting to annoy the heck out of him. It's not something that I actually planned for; but…I don't know how to say it. My life is one that is crazy and complicated. You wouldn't understand."

Da Qiao wasn't about to let her off so easily.

"You always say people won't understand you…because you never share. Shang Xiang told me that you're always keeping everything to yourself. You don't even share anything with her and its starting to make her feel left out by you…" She explained.

Da Qiao looked at the book on Ling Yun's lap and took it to have a look at it. "Qing Han…isn't that your mother? I've read this book before…the beginning to the middle of it really reminds me of someone." She said.

"It reminds me of me." Ling Yun said, combing her fingers through her hair.

With that phrase, Da Qiao looked up at Ling Yun. She had just noticed. The female character in the book often cried and never opened up to anyone. She had a hateful relationship with a man and carried herself as a brave woman; yet on the inside, she is torn and broken. She was just like Ling Yun.

"Can you tell me?" Da Qiao asked.

**& **

"_Can you hold my hand?" _

"_Yeah, why not?" _

"_Can you promise me?" _

"_Promise you what?" _

"_You'd be back."_

_  
"Yeah, I will."_

"_And then we can have our freedom."_

"_I promise you, Yun Wen."_

**&**

Ling Yun just smiled without saying a word. On the inside, however, she was frowning; and her heart was breaking even more.

"I have to go find Lord Sun Ce. Forgive me. I will talk to you soon, alright?" Da Qiao announced, holding Ling Yun's hand.

Ling Yun nodded and Da Qiao took her leave.

**&**

Gan Ning needed some more time on his own. He and Ling Tong had just gotten out of an important meeting for the next battle. He walked his way to the library, intending to just sit down and do nothing. On his way, Da Qiao walked out of the library and flashed him a smile. He smiled back as she made her way past him.

He entered the library, walking slowly past his worst nightmare: books.

But then he saw his real 'nightmare'. Sitting on a chair, just starring into blank space, sat Ling Yun. She caught sight of him, but just sat there and said nothing. He stayed still at where he stood while she still sat.

"So, you gonna kill me now?" He asked.

She gave an irritated scowl and stood up from the chair, walking back to the bookshelf and placing the book in there. "You're not even going to say sorry for what you said yesterday?"

Gan Ning "What? You attacked me. Shouldn't _you_ be saying sorry?"

Ling Yun gave him a sarcastic look.

Gan Ning gave her a mock face of realization. "Oh, I'm sorry. I almost forgot some people can't admit their wrongs." He made his way past her and sat on the chair she just got up from.

She glared at him hard, arms across each other. "If that's all you can say after _everything _that happened, then I really regret ever trusting you."

"Then why did you trust me?" Gan Ning challenged her, standing up.

"I have no idea why I did." She said in a whisper.

The two were silenced for a long while.

She noticed something about him. He was shaking a little bit, almost as if he was thinking of something very bad. Almost the same way her brother acted.

"My brother's been acting weird. And so are you. Is something wrong?" She asked, blinking.

"No." He replied, not wanting to look into those eyes.

"You're such a _hypocrite_." She said.

"Damn, what now?" Gan Ning asked, annoyed.

Men. They never understood that when a girl changed the subject, they actually wanted to talk about the previous subject.

"You wouldn't understand. You're a man." She replied, heading for the door.

"I'm a man you _trusted_." Gan Ning said loudly just as her hand reached for the door.

She stood still for a moment, before opening the door and leaving the library.

**&**

Xing Yi settled herself into her new room, packing her clothes neatly into a drawer, pulling out her hair band from her head and placing it on the dressing table. It was a normal and empty room; with just a table with drawers and a bed. However, there was a big space, just the way she liked it to be.

She took out the cloth wrapped box which contained her main weapons; a unique one. Two small war forks, with two prongs on each side, one prong longer and thinner than the other. Both war forks were connected by a semi-thick long strand of string. She could grab one of the forks and swing the other by the string or she could use both as normal daggers with minimum movement.

She took out another cloth wrapped box, a long sword lying inside it. She took it from its box and lunge it in the air. Her left foot took one small step in front of her right foot and stretched her free left arm out, her right arm with the sword in her palm slowly swinging beside her left hand. Then her right foot smoothed the floor in a graceful semi circle before she lunged the sword to the right, her left arm following. With soft breathing, she stayed in that position for a few long moments, just hearing herself breathe and planning for the next few moves.

**& **

Ling Tong stood in side of her doorway, just watching the new general did her sword dance. She sure was immensely talented it in. He watched as she continued swinging her sword in circles, her legs gracefully following in those circles, while she remained unaware that Ling Tong was watching her dance in the big space in her room.

He folded his arms across each other, a smirk playing across his face. The last time he had ever seen a dance was when the two Qiaos performed a victory dance for the victory over the Battle against the ruthless and powerful warlord Cao Cao, when during the banquet, he and Gan Ning did their own sword dances, both intending to outdo the other. And honestly, the two couldn't dance to save their lives, which is why the 'dance' became a sparring match and resulted in the two falling off the stage and the swords landing on another table.

**&**

"_Ha! I just knew you wouldn't be able to take more than two, kid." Gan Ning scoffed, putting his mug of beer down on the table. The noises of the banquet were loud enough to drown Gan Ning's voice, but Ling Tong could still hear him anyway. _

"_Kid? You're the same age as I am!" Ling Tong exclaimed loudly, shooting him a daring look and grabbing another mug of beer._

"_I call anyone kid, alright?" Gan Ning rolled his eyes._

"_Why do you drink so much?" Ling Tong asked. _

"_I'm a pirate." That was his stupid reply._

_Ling Tong hit him on the head. "Seriously, why?"_

_Gan Ning rolled his eyes again and looked into the mug. "Some girl. You wouldn't want to know who she is. I think y'would kill me." _

_His eyes darted to the stage where the two Qiaos were dancing on. They repeatedly closed and opened their large fans, prancing around the stage like little ballet dancers. _

_When they were done, the audience erupted into a loud applause. _

_With that, Sun Ce walked to the stage and asked who would like to perform next. Gan Ning, in his drunken state, stood up proudly, making the audience erupt into loud laughter. This was priceless- seeing the pirate dance on stage. However, he wasn't going alone. He pulled Ling Tong from his seat, despite his endless shouting not to._

"_We are __**not **__dancing with fans!" Ling Tong shouted through the noise. _

"_Of course we're not. We gonna dance w' swords instead ya goofball!" Gan Ning shouted back, pulling Ling Tong's arm harder. _

"_Gan Ning! I'm not dancing!" Ling Tong was about to scream. _

_Gan Ning grabbed two swords from the display and threw one at Ling Tong, which he easily caught. _

"_Give it up for Ling Tong and Gan Ning! I'm guessing they're sword dancing for us!" Sun Ce announced, despite Ling Tong's protests and repeated hand signals of 'no'. _

_He groaned when the crowd cheered. Even Lord Sun Jian and the other two Sun siblings were laughing and clapping along to the crowd. _

_Gan Ning ran up to the stage and pointed his sword at Ling Tong. "Can you beat me?" He asked in a whisper. Although Ling Tong couldn't hear what he said, he read his lips. With that, his eyes narrowed and he ran up to the stage, making more cheers erupt._

_The crowd got into a shock when Ling Tong clashed his sword onto Gan Ning's. He spun around repeatedly in a martial arts fashion with his sword that repeatedly clanged against Gan Ning's. Here was the place to showcase what he was really made of. Gan Ning defended all the hits, like he always did. Their swords clashed, and Ling Tong was moving backwards, step by step, near the edge of the stage. _

_As the crowd cheered, Ling Tong placed his left foot in front of a small space where Gan Ning's right foot was. Gan Ning took another step forward, thus, he tripped and his sword flew to a table, emitting soft shouts of shock from those around the table. His shoulder hit against Ling Tong's arm, making Ling Tong lose his grip on his sword which too, flew to another table. The two close-to-friends fell over the stage and landed on a table in a loud thud and sounds of plates and cups breaking before landing on the ground in another thud, gaining a round of 'oh's from the crowd. _

_Sun Ce, Zhou Yu, Lu Meng and the two Qiaos ran over to the pair while Sun Jian and the other two Sun siblings stood up from their chairs with shocked looks over their faces. _

_The crowd burst into a series of "Are they okay?" and "Oh god, what happened?" questions. _

_And yes, they were okay. They were on the ground, surrounded by some broken pieces of plates and cups, laughing at each other and at themselves. Boy did they have fun._

There would be a little party tonight, to celebrate the new general's arrival. Xing Yi had been notified about it, and was a little shy in accepting it. She was such a soulful person, he could tell by the way she carried herself, the way she spoke and the way she was dancing. Why didn't she just become a dancer instead of fighting on the battlefield? Through her dancing skills, he could tell she was a splendid fighter; but honestly, being a dancer would suit her personality more.

He watched in awe as she spun around in quick circles and landing on her toes gracefully, bending down so that her left knee was up, and her right leg resting on the ground. She spun her sword around in extremely fast slashing moves without breaking a sweat. She got up and leapt about the empty space, swishing her sword left and right, running gracefully in circles, with her hands and feet coordinating perfectly well.

And then, in one final spin, she leapt into the air, spinning her sword around in circles and landed softly on the ground, the sword behind her back and her left arm stretching out in a finished position. She was breathing heavily now, trying to catch her breath. When she turned to the doorway, Ling Tong quickly made his way away from her room.

**&**

**TBC**

**NEXT CHAPTER (7)****: TRIPPER **


	7. TRIPPER

CHAPTER SEVEN; TRIPPER

SORRY for not updating for a long time. I've been really busy with school and stuff. You know, the usual jazz and all…Well, I managed to get the next chapter done anyways! :D

Thank you very much for your reviews. Like I've said, it really encourages me and makes me feel good about my work. X3

**CHAPTER SEVEN; TRIPPER**

_Gan Ning's pale hands soon turned red with his mother's blood. Struggling to get her to say at least a word, the little pirate screamed louder with each breath he took in, waiting for a sign of life from his mother. Waiting for her to open her eyes and say his name. It was just a few seconds before she did. "Gan Ning…" _

"_Ma!" Gan Ning's tear strained face lit up at the sound of that beautiful voice. _

"…_Be strong." She whispered, the side of her lips curving up into a weak smile. Gan Ning couldn't believe his eyes. His mother was dying before his own eyes and there was not a damned thing he could do about it. He could only hold her hand and pretend to deny the fact that she was bleeding to death from the loss of blood from her head. _

"_Don't go, please don't go," Gan Ning begged, cupping her right hand with his tiny hands. "Please don't go! I need you, Ma!" _

_Her hands reached for his face. Using her thumb she wiped off a tear forming right under Gan Ning's eyes. "Be strong, my little Gan Ning...be unbreakable and unstoppable…" She whispered._

_Her eyes shut, her hand fell, and she was gone._

_Gan Ning's little glimmer of hope was smashed to pieces. He tugged at her sleeves, pleading for her to come back to life, although he knew it would do no good at all. He could only scream out her name. He felt like dying on the spot. He glared up at his father with the look on his face which asked "Why?"_

_His father had been standing there for the whole minute, just glaring at his son and the woman he just killed unintentionally. _

_He flung the remaining of the glass bottle at Gan Ning, only to miss by a meter. Gan Ning jumped at this, and ran away from the crazy man who just murdered his mother. _

_He ran, as fast as he could. _He killed mother.

_He blinked his eyes and tears ran down his face. _He killed the only person who understood me in this world.

_He came to a stop in front of a display of swords. He gulped hard and looked to his left and to his right. The screams and shouts from the previous incident couldn't wake the other pirates up. Maybe he should just do it. _

_Not caring about what pain he would face, he landed his fist into the display, grabbing the handle of the sword and pulling it out from the display. _I have to avenge mother…and my lost sibling.

"_Com'ere you wretch! Y'little coward! Scared to face me?!" _

_Trembling, the blade chopped into the wooden ground. The sword was a little too heavy for the young boy to handle. He mustered all his strength to shout back at his father. "__**You**__ face me!" He challenged, causing a hysterical laughter from the menace._

_Gan Ning took small steps towards his mother's body, where his father glared at him with piercing eyes that would scare off even the toughest warriors. He looked at his mother, and the rage added to his strength. He looked at that wooden dove he had carved for her that hung around her lifeless neck in a string. He held up the sword, almost falling backwards. _

"_Ha! What're ya gonna do w'that, huh? Carve an'ther bird?" _

_Gan Ning said nothing and clutched the sword's handle even harder. He didn't care if it was heavy. All he wanted was to see his father die. And he would be happy to be the one to cause his death. And in a flash, the sword was thrust forward. _

**&**

Gan Ning headed back to his room, hands on the back of his head, stretching his muscles as he walked. The welcome party for the new general was tonight, and though it was a good idea for a party, he found it ridiculous to hold a party just when a war was brewing.

He found it weird for him and Ling Tong to talk. After that night, their conversation earlier wasn't the same anymore. It was as awkward as it was supposed to be natural. What was he supposed to do? That kiss felt so right but it was so wrong.

A small figure appeared from the shadows, head looking down, hands laced together. He raised his eyebrow at the figure, only to realize a little while later that the figure was none other than the Princess of Wu. He gave a smirk when she caught sight of him; his way of saying hello.

She gave him a wide smile, as if she was happy to see him. Well, she was happy to see the guy she took a fancy on.

"This isn't a place I thought you would be hanging around." Gan Ning started, coming to a stop in his footsteps.

She tilted her head, a light pink appearing on her cheeks. "Well…I wanted to find Ling Yun."

"She just left the library before I did…Who knows where she could be…" He muttered. He knew she would be watching the sunset again, but didn't say it.

"I think I upset her…" Shang Xiang had a look of guilt on her face, at which Gan Ning raised his eyebrows at.

"She gets upset at the slightest of things."

Shang Xiang gave a soft smile, "That _is _quite true, Mr. Pirate. I think that's the thing that sets her apart from the girls in this palace. She's got one heck of a temper."

"So do you, actually!" Gan Ning joked, earning a strong and poisonous glare from the princess. "Joking." He added before any harm could come upon him, raising his arms in defeat. He was surprised at himself that he was joking and teasing again at this kind of time where he was so worked up on thinking.

"Where were you headed?" Shang Xiang asked, shuffling her feet.

"My room, I gotta have some real private time." He answered.

"Have you seen…Ling Yun? My father wants to speak to her."

He shook his head.

The princess gave a nod and a wave, excitedly running away from him. As the figure grew smaller, he could see her turning back to give another wave.

But suddenly he realized that private time would mean more self-bashing. No, that couldn't happen. He _had _to talk to Ling Tong.

**&**

Xing Yi wandered on her own along the outside of the palace. Everything seemed so unfamiliar and new, being _new _of course. All she really wanted to do was just to go back to her new room and dance the whole day, with or without her swords. Everybody she had met have been real nice and friendly to her, especially the young strategist Lu Xun, whom by now, was already 23 years of age, just a year her senior; and not forgetting Ling Tong, who claimed he wasn't a scary guy. While everybody said he was the most sarcastic person to walk the surface of the Earth, she wasn't too sure about that; he seemed to have his mind fixed on something totally different.

It didn't really matter to her, since she had more than enough time to catch up with everybody and know everyone by the night, with the party and all… She let out a sigh with closed eyes. After a while she opened them again, eyes fixed on the ground. She watched her own feet take step after step on the solid green grass, so neatly grown, with the wind kissing her face and blowing her hair in its direction; any artist around there would surely have wanted to paint a picture of her.

Her eyes traced back to the gate just a few meters away from her. She stopped in her tracks. She had already been through a whole round around the huge palace she had crashed in just recently. She wondered what her life would be like if there was no chaos. She dreamt a dream that she would be a professional sword dancer, adding in her own style of dancing, dancing for the emperor's entertainment. If only it were true, she wouldn't be here.

But she had promised her father that she would fulfill his shoes- or at least she remembered she did. Her past is a mirror thrown onto the floor, with no way to fix back the pieces to its original shape. That was exactly how her past is to her; a broken mirror. She could barely remember anything except that she was the sole survivor of an attack; be it a natural disaster, a psychotic murderer.

She looked around the empty space around her, quiet and peaceful. If only this would be forever. She saw the 'sarcastic' Ling Tong standing in a corner, slumped against a wall, staring out into space. She didn't know if she was supposed to approach him or walk away slowly. She chose option number 2.

"Xing Yi?"

_Oh crap. _She thought to herself, spinning around, pretending to be shocked.

The tall man stood up from his slumped position and made his way over to her, his hand at the back of his head. "General Ling Tong, I didn't see you there." She said softly, turning away from him shyly. Those eyes of his really made her go weak in the knees.

"You didn't?" He joked with a slight nervous tone to his voice.

Xing Yi looked at him with a smile and shook her head. He still seemed like he was in another world.

"Ling Tong!"

The two Generals spun around, looking at Gan Ning, who made his way towards the two. Ling Tong rolled his eyes and sighed. Xing Yi took this opportunity to walk away. As she did, she looked at Gan Ning, dressed in red with bells attached to his waist belt. He was Gan Ning of the bells. She had imagined the famous ex pirate to look more…pirate.

Ling Tong snapped at Gan Ning, "What?"

"Don't 'what?' me in that tone, moron. We need to talk."

Ling Tong let out an irritated moan. "What's there to talk about? I thought this whole kiss thing was solved?"

"First of all, it's not. Second of all, your sister is driving me insane again. But let's talk about the first point first, shall we?" Gan Ning explained, holding out two fingers to indicate two topics. Ling Tong had rolled his eyes at the first topic, and groaned at the second topic.

"There's nothing to discuss, Ning." He said.

Gan Ning could take out his knives and throw them into Ling Tong if he didn't harbor those weird feelings for him. Instead, he took a deep breath, counting 1, 2, and 3 in a matter of 2 seconds and shook Ling Tong by the shoulders.

"There are a whole _lot _of things to discuss about, Tong! This thing is driving me freaking crazy! And it won't stop! You're lying if you say you're not feeling them too."

That was enough to make Ling Tong run out of excuses. "We've talked about it."

"Lie."

Ling Tong gave him the hardest glare he could muster, then, with a turn, attempted to walk away from the other general; resulting with a tight grip on his arm, stopping him from walking away.

"What?" He hissed, annoyed.

"Can you at least say something?" Gan Ning asked, gripping his arm tighter.

"What am I supposed to say? Yes, let's be gay?"

Gan Ning grew red, and let go of Ling Tong. "Of course not,"

"Then what do you want me to say?"

Gan Ning ran a hand down his face. What _did _he want Ling Tong to say? Both of them would never be gay for the other.

"Well…?" Ling Tong prompted, a hand on his waist.

Gan Ning was speechless. He knew Ling Tong was right. Ling Tong was always the winner in debates. He turned away from the other General, slowly, and when he turned back, Ling Tong was already gone. Walking away, a hand at the back of his head, as if frustrated. He must have been thinking the same.

**& **

"Lord Sun Jian, you called for me?" Ling Yun asked politely, stepping into his office. Sun Jian turned around and gave a light smile, ushering her to sit down. Next to him was Lu Xun, who politely greeted her while she did the same.

Ling Yun took a seat.

"I called you here to discuss about some issues that had occurred lately…" He started. Ling Yun wanted to roll her eyes. He had already warned her about the whole attack on Gan Ning. What could he possibly want now?

"But before I get to the 'issues', Lu Xun here has something to say about your role in our next battle against Cao Cao's son, Cao Pi." He continued, nodding to Lu Xun, indicating that he could speak.

Ling Yun smiled at the strategist. He really had grown over the years alongside her. It was just like yesterday he was one of the most promising strategists and today, he was comparable to Zhuge Liang.

"For our next battle, your role is simply to fight alongside the new General Min Xing Yi, Ling Tong and Lu Meng. But I had decided that General Gan Ning should be put alongside the three of you. I hope that is okay?"

Ling Yun nodded slowly. If she were lucky, maybe Gan Ning would die in that battle. But she knew he was too good a fighter and defender to actually die.

"Yes." She nodded.

Lu Xun smiled and nodded, taking his leave.

"Now, Ling Yun. I am aware that I have spoken to you about your…issues…with Gan Ning. I know that you're angered about what he did to your father…but honestly, why is there so much hate? Your brother never examined such hatred…and he witnessed your father's death. It's just…disappointing to see such great talents against one another."

Ling Yun laced her fingers together, looking up at Sun Jian. She wouldn't tell anybody why. She and only she knew why. Whether she was ready to tell the truth would be in a long time to come.

**&**

_The young girl of 16 did not have much sleep for days. Days she spent wasting time, just waiting for her mother to say a word. It was agonizing, seeing her mother grow weaker each second that passed by. With her chin brought down to her knees, arms wrapped around her sheens, she stroked a strand of hair behind her ear and lay against the wall behind her. _

_She knew that nothing she did now was going to bring her mother back. _

_Her brother put a hand on her shoulder, giving a warm smile, which she returned for only a second, before turning back and starring at the bed her mother lay on. Just a few days ago, she had to witness her mother slowly fade away from the world, in just a matter of days which seemed like a split second. _

"_It's time to go." He whispered. _

_She shook her head, "I'm not leaving. You can go with father to fish. I'm not in the mood today."_

_Ling Tong gave a nod, and stood up, leaving his sister to her own quiet time. _

_She sighed to herself, clutched the hairclip with the dragonfly and rose on it, and just admired it. She would give anything for her mother to be back here with her, guiding her and protecting her. She was angry that she couldn't help her mother; after all the times her mother had been there to comfort her. _

_She lay her head down on her knees, and sobs emerged just a few seconds later. _

_Before long, footsteps entered the room. _

_She looked up, and her father kneeled down till he was the same height as his daughter. He didn't smile, he didn't give any form of expression. He just pulled his daughter for a hug. _

"_I know you miss her," He said, whispering into her ear. "But she's in a better place now, Yun." _

_Ling Yun nodded, agreeing with what her father just said. She needed him and Ling Tong now more than ever. They just lost the soul of the family, and without that single soul, things weren't looking good. _

_When her father left, Ling Yun stayed in her same position for a few minutes. She smiled when she heard the sounds of a familiar ring tingling in her ear. Then she stood up, and headed for the door._

**&**

**TO BE CONTINUED:**

**NEXT CHAPTER (8): AWAKE**


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